60-544 Dry Creek Turquoise Inlay Cuff Bracelet
60-544 Dry Creek Turquoise Inlay Cuff Bracelet
Handmade Sterling Silver with Dry Creek Turquoise Inlay Cuff Bracelet
by Victor Truillo
1 1/4” width, 6 3/4” circumference , 1 1/4” opening
(6 3/4” circumference includes opening)
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The pale blue Dry Creek Turquoise was first re-discovered (with interest) in the Dry Creek Turquoise Mine also known as the Godber or Burnham Turquoise mine near Austin, Nevada in 1993. When the material was first found there was a white material and a pale blue material, they weren't actually sure what it was. It was further explored in 1999 by the current owners, Bruce and Jeri Woods. They had both materials lab tested and after they were assayed and their suspicions were confirmed: the pale blue material was, in fact, Turquoise, and this Dry Creek Turquoise was harder than they expected. This is not to be confused with the White material they found that turned out to be Aluminite. It took a while to get the now-famous Dry Creek Turquoise made into jewelry as the traditional jewelers did not favor its pale color, however, once it took off it became popular fast.
Dry Creek Turquoise is not treated or color enhanced and is revered for its light whitish-blue Turquoise color. Most Turquoise this light of a blue is chaulk and is too soft to cut. That is one of the main reasons that Dry Creek Turquoise is so valuable. It seems these days that the wilder the color of Turquoise the more popular it is.
Turquoise gets its color from the heavy metals in the ground where it forms. The Blue Turquoise forms when there is a higher concentration of copper than the Aluminum present, which is the case with most Arizona turquoises. Green turquoise forms where there is a higher concentration of Aluminum and in some cases Iron present; this is the case with most Nevada Turquoise. Dry Creek Turquoise forms where there are few heavy metals present, which is a rare occurrence and the reason for the light whitish-blue color. To date, no other vein of this turquoise has been discovered anywhere else and when this current vein runs out, that will be the last of it.
Turquoise is the rare and improbable product of an incalculable number of chemical and physical processes that must take place in the right combination and proper environment over a time span of hundreds of thousands if not millions of years. The extreme rarity of Turquoise makes rare colors such as Dry Creek Turquoise that much more rare.